| HSBC Survey: Consumers Slow to Seek Free Credit Reports, Despite ...
(CSRwire) PROSPECT HEIGHTS, Ill. - A new survey by HSBC - North America finds that while 82 percent of consumers fear identity theft, only four in 10 have taken advantage of the recent law - the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACT Act) - that gives consumers free access annually to their credit reports to check for errors. Checking credit reports regularly can help consumers detect identity theft, which, according to the Federal Trade Commission, has struck 27.3 million Americans in the past five years. It's also an opportunity for consumers to understand their credit status, see how their financial decisions impact their credit standing and assess their progress toward achieving financial goals. "Knowing your credit history represents the first step toward understanding and managing your financial well-being," says Loretta Abrams, vice president of community development and consumer advocacy at HSBC - North America.
Stocks: A Big Blue Bounce
Stocks gained ground Monday, attempting to recapture large losses from the first two weeks of the year. News from the financial sector continued to worry investors Monday, with Merrill Lynch (MER) still looking for extra capital and smaller banks reporting hits from deteriorating credit. News reports also circulated of a potential $24 billion writedown from Citigroup (C). But technology giant IBM (IBM) offered investors some rare good news. In the early afternoon on Monday, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 117.54 points, or 0.93%, to 12,723.84. The broader S&P 500 index moved 7.71 points, or 0.55%, higher to 1,408.73. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index rose 21.4 points, or 0.88%, to 2,461.34. Twenty stocks were rising for every nine falling on the New York Stock Exchange, while the ratio on the Nasdaq was 17 to 10 positive.
Team Party Crash: 'Radar' Third Issue Party
Nick Denton saunters up with L.A. blogger Mickey Kaus, who, in his long trench coat, looks like he desperately wants to be somebody's Deep Throat. The men start talking about Michael Kinsley and our eyes glaze over. Once they start serious discussion of whether Stuff magazine was "darker" under Greg Gutfeld's reign, we politely excuse ourselves. Also, we feel a bit weird reporting with Denton standing right there. It's a little like how we imagine it would feel to have our parents watching us have sex -- if Denton had any idea who we were. His hair is real. His love is not. With his love of karaoke and his knack for triple-fisting, we can see why NYT metro hottie Nick Confessore is a hit at these kinds of parties. Krucoff: "Si? Chuck? Let's hug it out." We don't know at what point the party turns into a blogger clusterfuck, but we're pretty sure it's around the time Andrew Krucoff shows up, minus his trusty box of "Save Krucoff" buttons.
Subprime Debacle Traps Even Very Credit-Worthy
One common assumption about the subprime mortgage crisis is that it revolves around borrowers with sketchy credit who couldn't have bought a home without paying punitively high interest rates. But it turns out that plenty of people with seemingly good credit are also caught in the subprime trap. An analysis for The Wall Street Journal of more than $2.5 trillion in subprime loans made since 2000 shows that as the number of subprime loans mushroomed, an increasing proportion of them went to people with credit scores high enough to often qualify for conventional loans with far better terms. In 2005, the peak year of the subprime boom, the study says that borrowers with such credit scores got more than half -- 55% -- of all subprime mortgages that were ultimately packaged into securities for sale to investors, as most subprime loans are.
Citizens at eye of storm over state investment pool
Citizens Property Insurance Corp., Florida's largest property insurer, is hoping its investments in a troubled state investment pool bounce back before hurricane season starts in June.
About $7 billion it taps to pay storm claims is managed by the State Board of Administration, which floundered late last year when its risky investments tied to the nation's subprime mortgage crisis came to light.
In a big move to protect its investments, Citizens officials said Friday they plan to diversify by moving $5.1 billion, or about half of the insurer's total assets, from SBA to private money managers.
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